One of the most incredible things about traveling to a new city is seeing the creative genius of street artists in the murals and paint work adding color and life to the city streets. Some are small, and one must know where to look for them. Others are massive, covering entire buildings. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest mural in the world covers over 250,000 feet of industrial wall space! These pieces of art can be anything from mind-bending illusions to heart-rending social commentary. Here, we're going to list some of the most amazing murals and paint work from around the world.

Girl with Balloon, Banksy, London, U.K.

We couldn't write a piece about street artwork and not include Banksy, could we? Banksy is perhaps one of the most popular street artists. His work has moved from the streets to museums and auctions, and his art often carries strong political and societal messages. Girl with Balloon, which first appeared in Waterloo in 2002, is interpreted many different ways. The mural depicts a young girl, hair blowing in the wind, reaching out for a red balloon. Some see this as the girl reaching out for hope. Others view it as a symbol of lost innocence. Either way, the image evokes strong emotions in its viewers.

My God, Help Me to Survive this Deadly Love, Dmitri Vrubel, Berlin Wall, Germany

This piece is not only a landmark of murals and paintwork, but has become a landmark of Berlin as well. The mural depicts Leonid Brezhnev, the General Secretary of the Soviet Union, and Erich Honecker, the General Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party of the German Democratic Republic in the “Bruderkuss,” a greeting kiss popular among the Soviet leaders of the time. The “deadly love” Vrubel is referencing is considered to be the military agreement between the two states which provided chemical weapons to the Soviet Union.

El Sueño Original (The Original Dream), Armando Minjarez, Wichita, Kansas, U.S.A.

In 2018, Minjarez, funded by Horizontes, an organization promoting artistic expression and activism, converted a graffiti-covered grain elevator into a massive work of art. The 50,000 square foot mural is a celebration of the Mexican laborers who built much of Wichita, and is a nod to the many ethnicities of people living there.

These murals and paint work show the artistry and ingenuity of street artists all around the world. So, next time you're walking through a new city, look out for the paintings on the sides of buildings and under bridges – they may tell you more about the city than any guided tour or travel book ever could.